Buster Welch - 2012 Golden Spur Award Winner

say the word buster and ranching are cutting country and folks don't have to guess who you're talking about Buster Welch born in 1928 is a staple in the cutting ranching and horse breeding industries while Buster is synonymous with world champion and Futurity winning cutting horses all Buster really ever wanted was to be a rancher from childhood he dreamed of owning and running his own cattle ranch after leaving home at 14 Buster began his first job at the proctor ranch in Midland working for Phi and Leonard Proctor the ranch needed help because so many young men were fighting at World War two Buster's job was to start Colts and any other ranch chores that had to be done I went to work owner rights when I was 14 for the Proctor brothers breaking Colts jingling the horses and cutting wood and and doing things that way to relieve a man of that responsibility because was all pretty short-handed but back in those days we didn't use pickups everything was done with writing and teams and with horses and my we had some good horses they were the proctors were real horsemen it was pretty isolated back there but I really really enjoyed it that they tell the story that we didn't get much outside news you know and they say when the world war two started one of them cow punchers coming in his Horsell either need come away from town and told him said boys we're in a warren said we're in a big fight and they said well what what happened what started oh he said like all fights start over some woman named Pearl Harbor it was at the proctor ranch that Buster got his first lesson on writing cutting horses Buster's ranch resume includes places like the four sixes the long axe and the pitchfork where he honed his skills as a horseman familiar with cutting contests he saw as a kid Buster soon was earning money showing cow ponies and gaining a reputation as a good horseman the first horse that brought him to the attention of many was the gritty Chickasha Mike who wasn't saddled until he was a 6 year old and with Buster aboard outscored the great Jesse James at the 1950 once it arose around up cutting in Vernon Texas won shoemaker was cause me getting chicks a mic which actually kicked my career off and I sure thank him for that other professionals in cutting Sue began to notice Buster's talent with cutting horses oilman Marion Flint saw the young cowboy compete and sent his mayor Marion's girl by a silver wimpy for Buster to train in 1954 Welch maid Marian's girl a world champion and she in turn made him a well-known trainer Buster joined several other competitors to start the national Cutting Horse Association Futurity a competition for three-year-old horses that had never been shown the first event was held in Sweetwater Texas 1962 Buster showed his way to the top aboard money Glo earning a little more than 38-hundred dollars and the prestige of winning the first NCAA Futurity and CH a was about to be set on its ear as Buster dominated the NCHA Futurity with a record five wins starting with money Glo followed by Chickasha Glo in 1963 Ray J's Pete in 1966 drydock in 1971 and petty San badger in 1977 Buster's success led him to a position with King Ranch where he campaigned mr. san pepe to NCHA world championships in 1974 and 19 seventy-six and an AQHA World Championship in senior cutting in 1976 I think T ough put together one of the most successful horse breeding programs has ever been and I think the record showed and it might have been pretty much the highlight of my life of being part of that and one in the fraternity own little 54th for the King rights Buster is a cattleman by heart his ranching operation is in Roatan Texas where he and his wife Shayla returned after working and living in Kingsville for 15 years my dad used to say she was my secret weapon if I could get her to ride my horse and usually Mitama - it seemed like it kind of smooth them out and give him confidence in himself and he'd get better Buster continued to train horses and to build a small Empire of his own the family holdings eventually grew to include more than 60,000 acres of leased and old land several years ago they sold their 25,000 acre double mountain river ranch and moved on to the adjacent 18,000 acre Criswell ranch cattle from Welch's be lazy W brand are in high demand by other beef producers from all over the United States he's been marketing calves to Coleman natural meats for nearly two decades a decision that coincided perfectly with the public demand for naturally grown foods even after suffering a stroke in 1999 Buster still oversees the running of his ranch and remains a familiar figure at cutting events and an act of showman he won the 2011 NCAA Futurity Champions Cup a battle of returning and CH a Futurity winners held in Fort Worth aboard bet he's a cat owned by fellow cutter Austin Shepard based on the crowds applause during his run it was obvious Buster Welch is a favorite and legend cutting horse fans Buster served the cutting industry well he served on the NCHA Executive Committee from 1962 to 1963 and as an NCHA director he also was work to provide an education for future young ranchers in 2010 Buster donated his time and expertise to help raise money for the Ashland Kansas public school district he recognized the effect the declining economy had causing people to move away from rural areas and he wanted to provide funding for the schools that are suffering from a drop in the number of students along with two other cutting professionals Buster put on a clinic for 21 participants which raised $13,000 to help fund the struggling Ashland public school system Buster has received several honors for his work in the NCHA American Quarter Horse and ranching industries he's been inducted into both the NCAA member and rider halls of fame Buster was also awarded the Charles goodnight award the Foyt proctor memorial culmann's award of Honor and is a member of the Texas cowboy Hall of Fame Buster was inducted into the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame in 2004 and is a recipient of aqh A's 40-year breeder award above it all even being the best known name in cutting and a hero to many Buster Welch regards himself as a cattleman first the dreams of a boy have come true for the king of cutting congratulations Buster Welch this year's Golden Spur Award winner

Channel: AQHA Video

Views: 27,186

Rating: 4.8527608 out of 5

Keywords: Golden Spur Award, Buster Welch, Ranching Heritage Center, Texas Tech, Lubbock, Cutting, Ranching, American Quarter Horse, NCHA, cutting Futurity, Procter Ranch, King Ranch, cutting horse trainer, Little Peppy, Peppy San Badger, Mr San Peppy, AQHA

Id: qr-NCReNcxE

Length: 8min 9sec (489 seconds)

Published: Thu Dec 20 2012